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NewForester


Posts: 379
Joined: Feb 2008
Post: #1
08-04-2008 04:02 PM

I wish that Forest Hill had a decent Greengrocer. Sainsbury's

  1. Cannot keep the shelves stocked
  2. Seasonal variety is limited to strawberries / no strawberries Sad

What shop / facilities do you want to see in the Hill district (excluding the pools...)?

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bell


Posts: 21
Joined: Oct 2007
Post: #2
08-04-2008 04:56 PM

Butcher, fishmonger, deli...

I was in East Dulwich the other day and was reminded at how much there is there. I know it's really not far and I could (and keep planning to) use them, but it would be nice if they were in FH too.

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Fairly


Posts: 1
Joined: Apr 2008
Post: #3
08-04-2008 06:21 PM

I think those are good ideas, very handy to everyone.

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oryx


Posts: 205
Joined: Nov 2007
Post: #4
08-04-2008 06:35 PM

I've wished for a decent greengrocer ever since moving to HOP last year. There was one where I used to live in SW London & it was great not buying veg & fruit at the supermarket - they were cheaper, tastier & better quality.

There's a good butcher near-ish to me however - just as I shack up with someone who doesn't eat meat! Sad

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shzl400


Posts: 729
Joined: Oct 2007
Post: #5
08-04-2008 06:36 PM

Same old, same old....

It's worth noting, however, that there is both a deli and a new bakery in Honor Oak Park, with a beauty parlour on its way (although the loss of the florist is a blow) and that FH now has the long-sought after coffee shop.

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samantha40


Posts: 13
Joined: Apr 2008
Post: #6
08-04-2008 07:41 PM

Unless a good greengrocers opens soon I'll continue to use Riverford who deliver in this area on a Thursday. Produce is really fresh and reasonably priced - much better value than Sainsbury's. Plus you get to read a great, ranting, opinionated newsletter by Guy Watson each week which usually makes me chuckle.
I would like to see a good independent bookshop in FH - with an excellent children's section. WHSmiths doesn't rock my world, and I don't have time/can't be bothered to go to Sydenham or Dulwich Village. I regularly need to buy presents for children's birthday party's and as there are so many rubbish things available for kids I prefer to buy a book. (They might not be particularly enthused when opening, but will appreciate it later).

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vipes


Posts: 145
Joined: Oct 2006
Post: #7
08-04-2008 09:02 PM

There is a greengrocer. An excellent one selling a veritable array. The Turkish supermarket on Forest Hill Road. I got a great big box of kumquats there for ?1 last week.

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soulrider


Posts: 37
Joined: Nov 2007
Post: #8
09-04-2008 08:07 AM

The deli /bakery in hop is wicked, the guy in there is so funny he doesn't stop talking, one of the friendliest people you could meet.

It suprises me fh doesn't have all the cool stuff that east dulwich and cp has, it has way more character in every other department and better transport connections.

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annsquire66


Posts: 105
Joined: Jan 2008
Post: #9
09-04-2008 08:45 AM

NewForester wrote:
I wish that Forest Hill had a decent Greengrocer.


I moved to Forest Hill originally in 1979.
There were two butchers, Wests (now William Hills) and Dewhurst (now The Big Breakfast). The fishmonger was where the Red Cross shop now stands although at one point I believe it was the original Sainsburys. Pizza Hut replaced a coffee bar that sold coke floats- in sundae glass on a plate of course! We also had a Tescos (when it was a failing brand) where Paddy Power is now. Don't remember a deli but there were also 3 or 4 greengrocers and 2 shoe shops.
Point is they have all sadly all fallen victim to the inability to compete with the big boys.
The use 'em or lose 'em slogan really does apply...

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Elizabeth25


Posts: 212
Joined: Mar 2005
Post: #10
09-04-2008 10:50 AM

soulrider wrote:
The deli /bakery in hop is wicked, the guy in there is so funny he doesn't stop talking, one of the friendliest people you could meet.

It suprises me fh doesn't have all the cool stuff that east dulwich and cp has, it has way more character in every other department and better transport connections.



That is an interesting point (and one that has been written about without end of ancient threads. Why, when FH has better transport links, ED also has a very busy road running through it (as CP)--why do we get the bookies and Planet Pizzas? Is it really market demand?

(I don't want to dismiss the pockets of independance within FH--we all know where you are on Dartmouth Rd.)

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Applespider


Posts: 285
Joined: Feb 2006
Post: #11
09-04-2008 12:42 PM

Lordship Lane, although busy, isn't as busy as London Road which has all the South Circular traffic on it.

It's also more pedestrian friendly with zebra crossings and because it's narrower, it's easier to cross at almost any point along it. Trying to cross London Road can feel like an exercise in patience (waiting for the pelican outside Sainsburys) or playing chicken with the cars if you don't.

Add to that the number of streets with lots of terraced houses coming straight off Lordship Lane and it's a very compact centre which encourages people to walk and therefore more shops.

The better transport links of Forest Hill also makes it more likely to be commuterville with many people simply transitting through en route to the station.

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Elizabeth25


Posts: 212
Joined: Mar 2005
Post: #12
09-04-2008 01:01 PM

Yes, but....Isn't the main high street for FH, Dartmouth Rd? Which is not the South Circular?

(I am in danger of starting a debate, which was covered in previous threads, I know).

I do get your point that ED does have a greater number of pure residential streets directly off Lordship Lane.

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michael


Posts: 3,262
Joined: Mar 2005
Post: #13
09-04-2008 01:13 PM

There was a time when East Dulwich was very different but it has been progressing on an upward spiral (if that is the right phrase). One success leads to another and there comes a point where you have critical momentum (and footfall) that will allow for high rents and high turnover.

It is interesting that a new cafe is planning to open in the very recently vacated Caravan/Silk Route site (opposite the Lemon Grove). It makes me ask the question; why has nobody snapped up the vacant lot next to Sainsburys and the path to the car park. This is a prime location and I can only assume that the rental cost is too high. It might be a difficult site for a greengrocer or butcher, but I don't understand why a cafe has not opened here already.

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ForestGump


Posts: 202
Joined: Jan 2008
Post: #14
09-04-2008 01:36 PM

For something like 20 years (?) there were empty shops, they were demolished to expand Sainsbury's. Since then shops further down have closed and the new unit is still unused.

I don't understand East Dulwich and its attraction to residential and commercial owners.

Interestingly in 1999 we were shown properties in East Dulwich to show what could be bought compared to prices in Lewisham.

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Elizabeth25


Posts: 212
Joined: Mar 2005
Post: #15
09-04-2008 02:27 PM

Was Lewisham more expensive then? It's the DLR, correct?

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NewForester


Posts: 379
Joined: Feb 2008
Post: #16
09-04-2008 05:20 PM

michael wrote:
why has nobody snapped up the vacant lot next to Sainsburys and the path to the car park.


Lack of advertising maybe? I cannot find out who the agents are, nor can I find it advertised anywhere on the web unlike the other vacant units in FH

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ForestGump


Posts: 202
Joined: Jan 2008
Post: #17
09-04-2008 09:47 PM

Elizabeth25 wrote:
Was Lewisham more expensive then? It's the DLR, correct?


Yes at that time, DLR, new century and Lewisham was regarded a 'hot spot' by the press. Be intresting to see what happens in the run up to the ELL

Re the shops could it be that there's not rows and rows of housing in Forest Hill? Possibly more places like Forest Hill Central are needed to increase the population in the area?

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Elizabeth25


Posts: 212
Joined: Mar 2005
Post: #18
10-04-2008 09:00 AM

But I heard a rumour that the FH Central flats weren't selling very well. Compared with the interest in the Sainsbury's flats.

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ForestGump


Posts: 202
Joined: Jan 2008
Post: #19
10-04-2008 09:46 AM

I don't know how the properties are trading but Berkeley Homes have recently updated their website.

Quote:
Berkeley Homes anticipate that with a shorter and easier commute, househunting executives from Canary Wharf and the City will be attracted to residential developments that lie close to stations along the line such as Forest Hill Central.



Maybe Forest Hill could trade on the fact there will be far more off-peak trains in the evening and look to attract custom from up and down the line?

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edd


Posts: 147
Joined: Mar 2008
Post: #20
10-04-2008 11:13 AM

Living in FH, and working in East Dulwich as I do, I'd say the latter has a better class of independent shop and restaurant because it is, frankly, populated by a more middle-class type, overall. If anyone fancies checking out some acorn profiling on the area, I'd be interested to know if my hunch is correct. Smile


And I suspect ED often attracts the people it does because of the handful of very good schools there, for those that can afford them. However, once (if?) transport links into town are better, perhaps would-be "Dulwich mums" will be tempted to house-hunt further afield, safe in the knowledge that daddy can get to his high-powered job in double quick time from Forest Hill! Then, and only then, I think, can we expect to get independent shops on a par with ED: when a large enough proportion of the demographic is willing to pay slightly over the odds regularly enough to keep such businesses going.

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